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aileena99's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Child death, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Child abuse, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexism, Sexual violence, Transphobia, and Murder
benfkz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Child abuse and Child death
Moderate: Gore, Homophobia, Pedophilia, and Murder
Minor: Gun violence and Sexism
elwirax's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
"The defenders of decent society and the disciples of degeneracy are often the same people."
What I enjoyed most about this book was the very vivid world building and its great exploration of psychology, criminology and the ever elusive question of what makes a serial killer. I loved the case report style of the writing, the snippets of hindsight and the historical context which really made the book feel like non fiction. There were also many interesting themes explored such as class division, immigration, lack of equality (racism, sexism) and the birth of new radical ideas in the time period which made the story so compelling.
However, the characterisation really lacked for me. Sara was by far my favourite in the adaptation but the book didn't always shine light to her greatness. Kreizler and Moore were equally interesting in the show but were rather flat in the book. I think their characterisation and relationships were more developed in the adaptation, the lack of this in the book made it feel like a slog to get through at times with all the info dumping in terms of buildings and the landscape.
Another major factor that I disliked in this book was the use of outdated language ( n word f slur and g slur). Just because it's historically accurate does not mean I want to read it.
Overall, the period setting, themes and the mystery felt authentic and kept me interested. However, this was not a perfect book with often problematic language or ideas. The slow nature of the book can be attributed to the concentration on aspects that didnt serve much of a purpose and could've been re-directed into better character building. Therefore I couldn't give it anything above a 3.5. Nonetheless, it was an interesting read that I may return to in the future for the atmosphere alone.
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Pedophilia, Rape, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Racial slurs, and Violence
avareadsoccasionally's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, and Stalking
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Police brutality, Medical content, and Cannibalism
clemencepct's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Blood, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, and Excrement
acrosstheskyinstars's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis and Colonisation
triciam's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Stalking, and Murder
Moderate: Cursing, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Alcohol
_kimb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Gore, Homophobia, Torture, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Rape, Sexual assault, and Medical content
Minor: Racial slurs and Racism
antonishapolitepeoples's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Death of parent
lilifane's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
You definitely need at least some interest in the following, though: New York City (preferably it's history) and CSI/Criminal Minds (crime scene investigations and criminal profiling). Because there is a lot and I mean A LOT of words dedicated to these topics. Which means I loved it.
The story takes place in 1896 New York City and is a about an alienist (duh) trying to catch a serial killer. But it's not really a who done it, it focuses more on the psychological factor of such a crime, on the obsacles during that time to pursue such a goal and on all the methods of forensic science and criminal profiling that we take for granted now but that didn't really exist back then or were just being discovered.
I needed some time to get into the writing style and setting but once I was used to it, I really enjoyed it. To discover one of my favourite cities in such a historical setting was really cool and I appreciated how much time Carr spend on describing it in such a detailed and intimate way. (I wasn't that much interested in the political aspects though.)
The whole investigation process was amazing. Yes, it was very detailed and slow paced sometimes but... I didn't know that a whole chapter about the analysis of one letter could be this exciting. And discovering all those details with the protagonists little by little was absolutely rewarding.
Fell in love with the protagonists very quickly btw. The way they interacted with each other was just beautiful.
But... there are some things that bothered me, although most be attributed to the time the book was placed in. Sooo few women for example (although a very very cool one among the protagonists). And the way mentally ill people, queer people, sex worker were talked about even by some of the progressive protagonists (although one aspect of the book is to accept/respect these margialised groups more). I'm conflicted. Some deaths and the purpose they had make me angry. And this has nothing to do with the time period, this I just didn't like.
But as a whole I was really impressed by the book and how smart the plot was. And the author's note in my edition was hilatious. The story with the fake photo is my new fav thing.
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Murder